In English grammar, verb tenses or forms indicate the moment when something happens, such as the past, present, or future. These three primary forms can be subdivided further to add detail and specificity, such as whether the action is ongoing or to describe the order in which events occurred.
| Simple Tenses | ||
| Present | Past | Future |
| walk(s) | walked | will walk
going to walk |
Simple Present Tense
I wash my face every morning.
She works at the local video store.
My boss always gets to work early in the morning.
He usually goes for a walk every afternoon.
Petra doesn’t work in the city.
Where do you live?
2. For facts or general truths
The Earth is round.
His sister likes camping.
Many Europeans speak English.
Go to sleep at 10:00 pm. (imperative (instruction / command) NOT simple Present
I go to sleep at 10:00 pm. (simple present)
The imperative is used to give orders, commands and instructions.
If you read a recipe, for example, it will usually be written in the imperative:
“Peel the potatoes. Boil them for 5 minutes. Remove from pan.”
3, Describing people or things
Use the present tense to describe physical characteristics, personality traits, feelings, abilities, and likes and dislikes that are true in the present.
Her brothers are both over six feet tall.
He is the nicest person I know.
I feel sick today.
My best friend plays minor league baseball.
Many people love dogs, but many also love cats.
This milk smells funny.
Your new rose bush looks beautiful!
Simple Past Tense
How to form the past tense? Simply take the base form and add -ed. If the base ends in a silent e, just add -d, not -ed. The English language has quite a few irregular past tense forms that don’t end in -ed. Eg. buy –> bought
Unlike the present tense, the past tense always uses the same form regardless of person or number.
Use when something happened at some time in the past.
Jeff bought a new car last week.
Peter didn’t go to the meeting yesterday
When did you leave for work?
Yesterday I walked to the store.
Yesterday my sister played the piano and cooked dinner.
Yesterday I watched TV and listened to the radio.
Simple Future Tense
Paired with “will” to express a future act.
She will come to the meeting tomorrow.
They won’t (will not) help you.
Will you come to the party?
Paired with “going to” to indicate future plans.
I’m going to visit my parents in Chicago next week.
Alice isn’t going to attend the conference.
When are you going to leave?
Present perfect: something that began in the past and continues into the present.
Tim has lived in that house for 10 years.
She hasn’t played golf for long.
How long have you been married?
Past perfect: what happened before something else in the past.
Jack had already eaten when he arrived.
I hadn’t finished the report when my boss asked for it.
Had you spent all your money?
Future perfect: what will have happened up to a point in the future.
Brian will have finished the report by five o’clock.
Susan won’t have driven far by the end of the evening.
How many years will you have studied by the time you get your degree?
Present continuous: what is happening at the moment.
I’m working at the computer at the moment.
He isn’t sleeping now.
Are you working?
Past continuous: what was happening at a specific moment in the past.
I was playing tennis at 7 p.m.
She wasn’t watching TV when he called.
What were you doing at that time?
Future continuous: what will be happening at a specific moment in the future.
I will be lying on the beach this time next week.
She won’t be having any fun this time tomorrow.
Will you be working this time tomorrow?
Present perfect continuous: what has been happening up to the present moment in time.
I’ve been working for three hours.
She hasn’t been working in the garden for long.
How long have you been cooking?
Past perfect continuous: what had been happening up to a specific moment in the past.
They had been working for three hours by the time he arrived.
We hadn’t been playing golf for long.
Had you been working hard when he asked for it?
Future perfect continuous: what will be happening up to a specific moment in the future.
They will have been working for eight hours by the end of the day.
She won’t have been studying for very long when she takes the test.
How long will you have been playing that game by the time you finish?